Improvement in trunks



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

RICHARD S. JOHNSON, OF OHILLIOOTHE, MISSOURI.

IMPROVEMENT IN lTRUNKS'.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 148,464, dated March l0, 1874 application filed January 26, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD S. JOHNSON, of Chillicothe, in the county of Livingston and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Oval Trunk, of which the following is a specification:

My invention relates to trunks for traveling and packing purposes; and the invention consists, iirst, in the combination, in an oval trunk, of staves and joint-battens with an open rim, a rabbeted bottom, and bracing bearer tires, to bind, brace, and hold the staves and battens firmly together, and render the open-rim and stave trunk strong and durable; second, of hinged cross-bars of the deckframe, in combination therewith and with holding-springs and the trunk-cover, to form legs for the support of the cover as a table when turned back; third, in providing the tray-lid of the trunk-cover with a hinged legfor supporting the lid as a table upon the trunk-cover when both are thrown back; fourth, of hand-straps, in combination with rubber spring connections, the said straps being provided with stopbuttons to act againstthe battens when the handles are used, and the springs, to draw in the straps upon the surface of the trunk when not used.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a view in perspective of an oval trunk embracing my invention; Fig. 2, a vertical cross-section, with the trunk-cover supported as a table; and Fig. 3, a horizontal section of the trunk.

The trunk consists of a strong wooden bottom, A, having a rabbet, a, around its outer top edge, and a strong top wooden rim, B, having also a rabbet, I), in its lower inner edge. These parts are of oval form and equal dimensions; and into their rabbets a b the ends of staves c are tted, joined together, and securely fastened to form the body of the trunk.

The rim B may be made in sections, or of a single bent piece, and properly united at the ends.

The staves c are covered with leather 5 but this covering may be dispensed with.

Over the joints of the staves, and between the bottom A and the top rim B, I secure batA tens C, which, while covering the joints in the body, serve also as braces, and strengthen the connection of the rim and bottom with the staves. Encircling these battens G, and riveted thereto where theyT join the rim and bottorn, are tires D, one-half inch square, and these serve, among others, the important purposes of bearers, upon which to roll the trunk, and as bands, to brace and bind the body of the trunk, to render it iirm and durable. As bearers, therefore, these tires extend beyond the surface-line of the rim and the bottom, and protect the sides of the trunk in rolling it along; and they are one of the distinguishing features of my invention, and, with the battens and staves, form a series of arches, each resisting alike outside pressure.

The cover E is hinged, at one side, to the rim B, and a portion of its under side projects within the rim, while its top-surface inclines slightly upward, for the purpose of obtaining sufficient depth to allow a tray, F, to be formed therein, the lid G whereof is hinged so as to be turned outward; This lid is provided, nearly centrally, with a short leg, H, hinged so that when turned out from the lid its hinged end will form a stop, and the leg thus heldin position to rest upon the rabbeted edge d of the trunk-cover E, and support the tray-lid when thrown open as a table upon which to lay out the contents, as shown in Fig. 2. The leg H folds when the tray-lid G is closed; and, when supporting it thrown back, the hinges are thereby relieved of strain.

The top of the trunk-cover E has a deck, formed by parallel longitudinal rails I I and lcross-bars J, to protect the top yfrom injury in traveling. The cross-bars J, however, of this deck-frame serve the purpose of legs to support the trunk-cover E when thrown open, and, for this purpose, the ends of these bars next the lock side of the cover are hinged in sockets e in the rails I, so that when the bars J are turned out as the cover is turned back, the sockets or hinges ewill form stops to hold them in vertical position. When the cover is closed, the free ends of these cross-bars J t into sockets f in the rear rail, and are secured by springs g, so that they cannot fall out of place. To open these bars J, the springs g are simply pressed back. These legs J support the cover as a table when opened back to lay the contents of the trunk upon; and, in this position,

the cover E also forms a support for the supporting-leg of the tray-lid G, to make it also a table.

The trunk being of oval form, the hinge hof the cover can only be at one point on the side; and the legs J, with the hinge, make the tablecover. A horizontal oval-shaped tray, K, with compartments, is placed upon cleats L Within the trunk, and is removable at pleasure.

The handles of the trunk are formed of leather straps i, with rubber-spring connections j, secured to the battens C, the straps being passed through slots r therein, and having buttons s at the junction of the strap i With the rubber springs j, to form stops by striking against the battens G in drawing out the straps for handholds; and, when not using the handles, the springs draw the straps fiat against the stares. In this way the handles are kept in readiness for use, and out of the Way When not in use.

In rolling` the trunk, it is turned upon its sides, and rests upon the metal bearers, which hold it evenly While being rolled over upon its oval sides and rounded ends.

I claiml. In an oval trunk, the combination of the staves c and j oint-battens C With the open rim B, rabbeted bottomA, and bracing tire-bearer D, to bind, brace, and hold the staves and battons firmly together, substantially as described.

2. The hin ged cross-bars J of the deck-fram e, to form table-legs to said cover When thrown open, and held closed by springs g when the cover is closed.

3. The hinged supporting-leg H of the traylid G, in combination with the lid and the trunkcover E, upon the rabbeted edge d of which said leg rests When the lid is open.

4. The hand-straps@ in combination with the rubber-sprin g connections j, for the purpose described.

5. The combination of the hand-straps i and spring-connections j with stopbuttons s and the joint-battens C, as and for the purposes described.

RICHARD S. JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

Josnrn A. Coornn, GEORGE W. WARDER. 

